Apparatus for purifying water.



:4. 30m A Patented Jul 3 I900. 65 c. H. KOYL. y

APPARATUS FOR PURIFYING WATER.

(Application filed Feb. 9, 1900.)

(No Model.)

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THE NORRIS versus co PNOYD-LITHOY, WASKINGTON. u. c.

ITED TATES CHARLES HERSCHEL KOYL OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

APPARATUS F OR PURIF YING WATER.

SPEGIFIOATIOhLformingpart of Letters Patent No. 653,012, dated July 3,1900.

Original application filed December 20, 1899- Serial No. 740,958.Divided and this application filed February 9, 1900. $erial No. 4,621..(No model.)

To LLZZ whom it may concern: I

Be it known that I, CHARLES HERSCHEL KOYL, of'New York, in the countyand State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement inApparatus for the Softening and Purification of water, of which thefollowing is'a specification. V a

In aprior application for Letters Patent for certain improvements inapparatusflfor the softening and purification of water, filed December20, 1899, Serial No. 740,958, I have described and illustratedan'vapparatus for this purpose comprising, among other things, tanks forthe solution and subsequent supply of chemical reagents, in conjunctionwith a reaction-tank in which the chemicals are mixed with and act onthe raw water and a settling and filtering tank within which the treatedwater is freed from its suspended matter.

My present application is a division of my said prior application,Serial No. 740,958, and is directed to the construction and arrangementof the settling-tank.

The invention will first be described in connection with theaccompanying drawings and will then be more particularly pointed out inthe claims.

In said drawings, Figure 1 is averticalcentral section of thesettling-tank. Fig. '2 is a view, enlarged,of one of the cone-segmentsof the settling-tank.

The settling-tank D receives the treated water from the reaction-tankthrough the pipe P, this water in its upward passage through the tankleaving its precipitates and suspended matter behind and issuing atthetop through pipeE soft and clean and ready for use. The tank is providedat the bottom with a sediment-chamber formed by giving the'lower end ofthe tank a conical or tapering shape, the bottom of said chamber beingclosed by a dumping-valve V which by a suitable lever can be openedwhenever it is desired to dump or discharge the accum ulated sediment inthe tank.

Within the settling-tank is placed a series of superposed radiallyslitted or perforated hollow settling-cones H, placed small end up-.permost, surrounding at the center a pipe Hf,

open at both ends, and resting at their bases "or outer rims on bracketsd, secured at inter vals' apart to the inner wall of the tank, thesecones nesting together, but being placed at a certain distance apartfrom one another. Between the outer rims of the cones and the innerwallof the tank is an annular space down through which sediment can pass tothe bottom of the tank. Above the settlingcones and at or near the topof the tank is a filter-bed F.

To facilitate the settling inthe tank D of the precipitates which arecarried upward by the water to some distance from the bottom of the saidtank, it has been customary to place within the settling tank a seriesof plates, inclined so that the sediment will readily slide off and thespaces between which plates constitute, in effect, shallowsettling-basins Sometimes these plates are arranged in the shape ofspirals or volutes around a central core, so that the water followingthe course of the spirals may deposit its precipitates on the way up;but for the sake of convenient placing and removal these spirals aregenerally put in as loose sheets, and the connections of the same withthe core and with the circumference of the tank and with each other areso loose and open that the water finds it easier to rise through theseopenings than through the more tortuous channels formed by thespirals,with the result that the water does not rise slowly as a massand settle its suspended matter, but rushes in small streams throughthese openings and arrives at the filter loaded with suspended matter.Another device in use is that of perforated funnels (placed small enddownward) through the perforations of which the water rises with easyspeed and during its slower passage from funnel to funnel settles itsprecipitates upon the funnel-plates, these precipitates sliding down tothe central opening, which is common to all the funnels, and passingthus to the bottom of the settling-tank; but the difficulty in the useof this device is that since the circumference of the funnel getscontinuously smaller as the center is approached the precipitates in theact of sliding .down the surface of the funnel passover the perforationstoward the center, and thus become again suspended matter. To overcomethese difficulties, I use for settling-plates a series of cones placedsmaliend uppermost, with the result that the sediment slides outward anddownward toward the wall of the settling-tank and thence to the bottomof the tank, there being an annular space between the outer rim of eachcone and the wall of the tank, and since the circumference of the conegets greater toward the bottom the result is that the unperforatedsliding-surface becomes continuously greater toward the bottom of eachcone and there is therefore no tendency of the precipitates to slideover the perforations, which, it should be said, are arranged in radiallines from the center of the cone to the circumference.

Since it is desirable that the water shall move upward in thesettling-tank as slowly and quietly as possible and since it isdesirable that the precipitates settling upon the inclined plates shallnot in their downward motion cross any perforations in the plate throughwhich they might fall into the rising water, I make the perforations inthe cones in the form of radial slits, leaving only so much of the metalunperforated as is necessary to the stability of the cones and toprovide an adequate settling-surface. For ease in handling, in settingup, and in removal for any purposes the cones are each composed of aseries of segments which are bent to the proper curve before they areplaced in position and are then set in place, resting at the bottom uponbrackets (Z, secured to the inner wall of the tank, and resting at theupper truncated points against the central rod or pipe H. Fig. 2 showsin detail one such conesegment, (1 being the radially-arranged slitstherein. The water after rising through the slits or perforations of thecone spasses upward through the coarse filter F, which stops anyfloating particles and leaves the water free and clean for use. The rodor pipe II is hollow and is open at both ends, so that water from thelower part of the settling-tank will rise in it. By comparing the levelof the water in this tube with that of the water in the tank above thefilter F, I can determine whether the filter F is doing its duty orwhether it is so clogged as to prevent the free and proper flow of watertherethrough.

Having described my invention, what I here claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is

1. A settling-tank provided with a settlingsurface composed of a seriesof superposed hollow cones placed small end uppermost, but separatedfrom one another by intervals which constitute shallowsettling-chambers, and provided with slits or perforations arranged inradial lines, substantially as and for the purposes hercinbefore setforth.

2. In combination with the settling-tank a series of superposed hollowradially-perforated settling-cones placed small end uppermost butseparated from one another by intervals which constitute shallowsettling chambers, there being also an annular-space between their outerrims and the inner wall of the tank, substantially as and for thepurposes hereinbefore set forth.

3. In combination with the settling-tank and an axial core or supporttherein, aseries of superposed settling-cones placed small end uppermostbut separated from one another by intervals which constitute shallowsettlingchambers and composed each of radially slitted or perforatedsegments II which at their inner and upper ends rest against the axialcore or support, and at their outer and lower ends rest upon bracketsprojecting from the inner wall of the tank, substantially as and for thepurposes hereinbefore set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 3d day ofFebruary, 1900.

CHARLES IIERSCIIEL KOYL.

Witnesses:

OWEN E. ABRAHAM, PHILIP EARL DUDLEY.

